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Letting fly

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Commuting to work by aeroplane may not be a mere flight of fancy, according to Lynne Wenberg, Boeing’s head of R&D into Personal Transport Systems. Niall Firth reports.

To rise above the smog and traffic and soar into work in a personal aeroplane is the fantasy of many a harassed and cramped commuter. But the seductive daydream of Jetsons-style personal air travel is already the subject of much serious scrutiny by some of the biggest hitters in aerospace.

 

Tasked with investigating the feasibility of such a system at Boeing’s advanced R&D wing, Phantom Works, Lynne Wenberg is one person who thinks a Personal Transport System (PTS) could be more than just a flight of fancy.

Nominally based in St Louis, Phantom Works’ virtually networked team of around 4,300 staff supports all aspects of Boeing’s business. More than 800 systems and technology projects run concurrently, ranging from hypersonic flight and the development of advanced UAVs through to advanced avionics and composite aerospace materials. While the results of many of these projects remain strictly in-house as proprietary technologies, Phantom Works also develops technologies for external customers including NASA and the US Defence Department.

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